Digital Learning Commons: American Revolution: Boston Massacre

Resources

Beyond the Mythology of The Boston Massacre
Explores the mythology of the Boston Massacre, Paul Revere's engraving of the event, and the rise of lawyer, and future-President, John Adams.
What Really Happened In The Boston Massacre?
Interview with author and professor of history Eric Hinderacker about the differing published accounts of the Boston Massacre.

Primary Sources

History of the Boston Massacre, March 5, 1770
History of the Boston Massacre, March 5, 1770. Consisting of the narrative of the town, the trial of the soldiers: and a historical introduction, containing unpublished documents of John Adams, and explanatory notes.

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Kidder, Frederic, et al. History of the Boston Massacre, March 5, 1770: consisting of the narrative of the town, the trial of the soldiers, and a historical introduction, containing unpublished documents of John Adams, and explanatory notes. J. Munsell, 1870, www.loc.gov/law/help/rare-books/pdf/john_adams_1870_history.pdf.
Perspectives on the Boston Massacre
Fantastic resource from the Massachusetts Historical Society. Provides history of the Boston Massacre, primary documents, reactions at the time, information on the trial, and much more.

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“Perspectives on the Boston Massacre.” Massachusetts Historical Society, www.masshist.org/features/massacre/visual.
A Fair Account of the Late Unhappy Disturbance at Boston
Pamphlet published recounting the British side of the Boston Massacre.

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A fair account of the late unhappy disturbance at Boston: in New England ; extracted from the depositions that have been made concerning it ... With an appendix .. London, B. White, 1770, books.google.com/books?id=bKtbAAAAQAAJ.
A Short Narrative of the Horrid Massacre in Boston
Pamphlet published recounting the Bostonian's side of the Boston Massacre.

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Doggett, John, et al. A Short narrative of the horrid massacre in Boston: perpetrated in the evening of the fifth day of March, 1770, by soldiers of the 29th Regiment, which with the 14th Regiment were then quartered there: with some observations on the state of things prior to that catastrophe. Boston, Messrs. Edes and Gill, 1770, books.google.com/books?id=catbAAAAQAAJ.

Resources - The Trial

John Adams and the Boston Massacre Trial of 1770
Links to court proceedings (primary sources) from the Boston Massacre Trial.
Boston Massacre Trial
Brief overview of the Boston Massacre Trial.

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“Boston Massacre Trial.” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, www.nps.gov/bost/learn/historyculture/massacre-trial.htm.

Highly Recommended | Primary Source | Multimedia

Infographic | Digital Maine Library | College Level

World Book Encyclopedia

Old State House, site of the Boston Massacre

Dig deeper and search the Digital Maine Library databases for the names and vocabulary below.

John Adams	Paul Revere	Governor Thomas Hutchinson
Captain-Lieutenant John Goldfinch	Hugh Montgomery	Bartholomew Broaders
Captain Thomas Preston	John Carroll	Edward Garrick
Corporal William Wemms	William McCauley	Henry Knox
Hugh White	William Warren	Crispus Attucks
Matthew Kilroy	Christopher Monk	Richard Palmes
Samuel Gray	James Caldwell	Samuel Maverick
Patrick Carr

Databases

Research your topic using these Digital Maine Library databases to find scholarly, authoritative, and accurate resources.

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Podcasts

Backtrack History - The Boston Massacre
There are certain moments in history that almost read like a volcano. You can see the pressure building and if there isn’t some valve to relieve it, there’s an eruption. In a letter to a friend, John Adams warned of just that kind of eruption. “The 5th of March, 1770, ought to be an eternal warning to this nation. On that night the foundation of the American Independence was laid.”

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Stu. “The Boston Massacre.” Backtrack History, 7 Mar. 2017, itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/boston-massacre/id1225093083?i=1000384196868&mt=2.
WARTIME - Boston Massacre, Boston Tea Party
n the year 1768 the British Empire believed that they had honed in on the source of the troublesome sedition in the American Colonies and singled out Massachusetts as the primary culprit. In a stunning move the empire ordered General Thomas Gage to occupy the city and set in motion a path of bloodshed and chaos.

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“Boston Massacre, Boston Tea Party.” WARTIME: A History Series, 2 Oct. 2014, wartime.podbean.com/e/s03e05-boston-bloody-boston/.